#Sustainable Architecture
41 stories
A Topographical Dialogue in Jingdezhen
In Jiangxi Province, siarchitecture’s Mine Resort integrates a 720-square-meter retreat into the rugged hills of a historic mining region.
Architecture of Decay: A Swedish Hut Built from Forest Infestation
Ulf Mejergren Architects repurposes bark from beetle-damaged trees to create a living structure that mimics the building logic of ants.
The Microfactory Solution to the Housing Crisis
MIT-born startup Reframe Systems is deploying robotic microfactories to bypass labor shortages and build high-performance housing at scale.
The Structural Potential of Recycled Polymers
MIT engineers are rethinking home construction by 3D-printing load-bearing trusses from recycled plastic, aiming to reduce the industry's reliance on timber and concrete.
The Atomic Campus: Designing the Nuclear-Powered Data Center
AtkinsRéalis and Nvidia are partnering to design hyperscale data centers powered by dedicated nuclear reactors, aiming to bypass the constraints of the traditional power grid.
Helsinki’s Long-Span Bet on a Car-Free Future
The new Kruunuvuori Bridge stretches 1.2 kilometers across the sea, serving only trams, cyclists, and pedestrians—with a design meant to last two centuries.
Safdie Architects Designs a Cherokee Heritage Center Rooted in the Soil
By utilizing rammed earth and a decentralized layout, Safdie Architects proposes a Cherokee Heritage Center that feels like an extension of the Oklahoma landscape.
Crash Testing Houses for Wildfire Resilience
Researchers in South Carolina are conducting controlled burns on residential structures to identify vulnerabilities and test fire-resistant materials.
South Korea’s Solar Pivot
As Middle Eastern instability threatens global oil prices, Seoul is accelerating its shift toward decentralized, solar-powered communities to bolster energy security.
The Cold Light of Space: The Rise of Passive Radiative Cooling
As global heat waves intensify, new materials that beam heat directly into the cosmos offer a provocative, electricity-free alternative to traditional air conditioning.
The Architecture of Disappearance on a Greek Peninsula
Ateno Architecture Studio embeds a stone residence into the untouched terrain of Meganisi, prioritizing ecological subtlety over visual dominance.
Dezeen Awards 2026 Names New Panelists Focused on Heritage and Reuse
The 2026 awards cycle adds Moroccan architect Aziza Chaouni and Dimore Studio’s Britt Moran to its jury, signaling a continued emphasis on sustainable preservation and historical context.
The Weight of Modern Lightness
As architecture moves toward ethereal forms, the environmental cost of the materials required to achieve them reveals a deepening paradox.
AJ Small Projects 2026 Shortlist: Part 1 Revealed
The first ten schemes highlight inventive, community-focused design and a commitment to low-impact materials on budgets under £399,000.
AJ Small Projects 2026: First Shortlist Announced
The Architects’ Journal reveals the first ten projects in its annual small-scale award shortlist, focusing on budgets under £399,000 and sustainable materials.
Architecture’s Persistent Dream of Defying Gravity
From Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic spheres to modern structural acrobatics, the quest to decouple buildings from the earth remains a defining architectural obsession.
A New Anchor for Culture in Dakar
Francis Kéré’s design for the Goethe-Institut Sénégal marries local materiality with the institutional needs of a modern cultural hub.
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Urban Greening Stalls in Four Major Cities
Audit offices find that despite high ambitions, greening policies are falling short and are often treated as a secondary priority rather than a fundamental necessity.
The Case for Low-Tech Surface Preservation
As industrial coatings grow more complex, simple DIY mixtures are proving that basic polymer science can effectively shield outdoor surfaces from UV rays and moisture.
The Limits of Resilience in Belém
As the Amazonian capital prepares for the COP30 summit, record rainfall has overwhelmed the city’s infrastructure, exposing the gap between climate goals and urban reality.
The Vertical Forest: Toronto’s Experiment in Mass Timber
Limberlost Place, a new ten-story academic hub at George Brown College, signals a shift toward low-carbon, mass-timber construction in the modern skyline.
The 12-Day Retrofit: Decarbonizing Public Housing in Providence
A 1970s senior living tower in Providence replaced inefficient baseboard heaters with modern heat pumps in record time, offering a blueprint for upgrading aging urban infrastructure.
A Permanent Home for Culture in Dakar
In Senegal, Kéré Architecture employs compacted-earth blocks to create a headquarters for the Goethe-Institut that prioritizes openness and local materiality.
A Quiet Integration: The Reclaimed Brick of Paris’s Rosa Parks Community Center
Atelier MJA’s new civic hub in Paris utilizes material continuity and a low-profile footprint to anchor a developing neighborhood park.
Earth and Exchange: Francis Kéré’s New Vision for the Goethe-Institut
In Dakar, Pritzker-winner Francis Kéré replaces the standard model of adaptive reuse with a breathable structure built from local earth.
Essex Garden City Proposal Examined as Blueprint for New Towns
A 7,750-home development in Essex, designed by a team of prominent architects, offers potential lessons for the next wave of urban planning.
The Integrated Intelligence of the Perforated Screen
Traditional perforated screens like the jaali and mashrabiya are more than just decoration—they are sophisticated, passive climate-control systems.
Decarbonizing the Foundation: Stanford’s New Recipe for Cement
A breakthrough in material science from Stanford University could reduce the carbon footprint of cement production by as much as 67 percent.
From Industrial Scar to Sanctuary: The Transformation of Germany's Coal Mines
Situated between Berlin and Dresden, the Lusatian Lake District stands as Europe's largest landscape intervention, forging a nautical complex from former coal extraction zones.
A Glass-Walled Intermediary: Trenchs Studio’s Greenhouse for Filandón
Located at the entrance of a Madrid restaurant, this new structure uses passive design to harmonize agricultural retail with high-end culinary hospitality.
Europe’s Multi-Billion Euro Strategy for the Climate-Resilient Neighborhood
A transnational consortium of nine cities is testing how "urban renaturing" can preserve livability in a warming Europe.
The School that Grows: Hyderabad’s Living Forest Campus
Pentaspace Design Studio’s new campus for the Heartfulness International School uses vertical gardens and raw materials to integrate early education with the natural world.
The Memory of the Land: Rethinking Luxury in the Deccan Plateau
On the outskirts of Hyderabad, Iki Builds rejects the "imported glass-and-marble" aesthetic in favor of rammed earth and local stone.
The Cathedral and the Storm: Baltimore’s Nature-Based Flood Defense
As rising sea levels strain Baltimore's aging infrastructure, local congregations are repurposing their grounds as ecological buffers against urban runoff.
The Radical Act of Repair: Charleroi’s Palais des Expositions Wins Top Architectural Prize
The 2026 Mies van der Rohe Award honors a Belgian project that prioritizes repair over replacement, transforming a 1950s convention center into a model for adaptive reuse.
Campaigners Urge Treasury to Leverage Retrofitting for Growth
A new report from Don’t Waste Buildings argues that the government is overlooking economic opportunities by failing to incentivize the reuse of existing structures.
A House Born of the Earth
In the arid outskirts of Ahmedabad, Hiren Patel Architects + Design uses regional sands to create a home that functions as a living geological record.
ICON Prime: Scaling 3D-Printed Infrastructure for the Pentagon and NASA
The robotic construction firm is doubling down on government contracts, hiring former Representative Will Hurd to lead its new dedicated defense and space unit.
Vermont’s Subterranean Bet on Affordable Housing
A new neighborhood-scale geothermal project aims to prove that decarbonizing the residential sector is both technically viable and economically equitable.
Ingvartsen Architects’ Star Homes Improve Rural Health in Tanzania
A project comprising 110 homes in the Mtwara Region provides a new model for health-focused rural housing in sub-Saharan Africa.
Regional Housing Prototypes in Bhopal and Indore
Dhammada Collective’s new housing models for low-income rural residents in India emphasize the importance of regional design intelligence.